Joe's JournalSeptember 12, 2008When I submitted the sermon title for this Sunday—Wading Into the Water—I must confess the fact that the remnants of hurricane Ike will be brushing the metroplex after wreaking havoc on the Texas Coast was not in the front of my mind. However, the Word to be offered this Sunday through Scripture and hopefully somewhere within the words of a sermon will certainly speak to these realities we very well could be facing.
Our text for Sunday is the story of the Israelites crossing the Red Sea, as told in Exodus 14. Having released Israel from slavery, Pharaoh has a change of heart and sends his chariots to crush the fleeing Israelites. As Pharaoh’s army approaches, Moses and the Israelites find themselves trapped between the Egyptians and the Red Sea, or between, “the devil and the deep blue sea,” as the old saying goes. As the Israelites cry out in fear, longing to return to their bondage, Moses calls out to them, “Do not be afraid, stand firm, and see the deliverance that the Lord will accomplish for you today.” At this point Moses has no idea what God is going to do, yet he tells the people to fear not and to have the faith God will do something. It is only after this speech that God reveals to Moses what the plan will be. As a Pastor, I must confess I’ve done the same thing when seemingly trapped between an unrelenting force and an immovable object. Though Moses has no idea what deliverance will look like, he believes God will bring deliverance and calls the people not to fear.
God’s plan calls for Moses to lift his staff, part the seas, and for the people to go “into the sea on dry land.” In rabbinic tradition surrounding this passage, the question was asked, “Why does it say, ‘they went into the sea on dry ground’?” In response, Rabbi Judah, writing in the Babylonian Talmud, said, “When Moses lifted the staff, nothing happened. G-d said to him, ‘What are you waiting for? Command the people to go forward.’ The tribes began arguing with one another about who would have ‘the honor’ of going first into the sea. While they were arguing, Nahshon, son of Amminadab of the tribe of Judah began walking into the sea. The water hit his ankles, and nothing happened; his waist, nothing happened; his chest, nothing happened; his chin, nothing happened. When the water reached his nostrils, the sea parted and a way was made for Israel.”
What a wonderful insight into the ways God works and God’s call in the midst of those times we find ourselves between the devil and the deep blue sea. We are called to wade into the water, trusting God who makes a way we cannot imagine. This Sunday, we will consider what it means to wade into the waters of life—be they hurricanes hitting the Texas coast, or the sea of people we are trying to serve at the Bridge, or the seas of debt in which so many families feel themselves drowning, or the seas of uncertainty faced when the test comes back malignant.
Together let us hear the words of Moses: “Do not be afraid … see the deliverance that the Lord will accomplish.” Let us go forward into the seas of life that we might cross on the dry land God will bring when we wade into the water.
In Christ,
Joe
P.S. For those feeling called to wade into the waters in the wake of Hurricane Ike, information can be found on the Red Cross website:
www.volunteernorthtexas.org, click on the “Hurricane Ike Relief Assistance” block. If you are willing to organize a group that can be assigned to go out or to be on standby, please call Vangie Garza at 214-818-9843 or 1-866-797-8268 (e-mail is
vgarza@vcnt.org). Presbyterian Disaster Assistance will no doubt help in the long run, but the Red Cross is our best bet for immediate aid.